George Gottschalk IV resigned from his position as Student Government Association (SGA) Executive Vice President for Student Affairs at Senate last week, saying he is no longer able to afford to attend Northeastern and hold office without an opportunity for gainful employment.

“Pouring my soul into this office while trying to maintain an acceptable GPA and finance my entire education through side jobs and a few loans has been extremely difficult this term with only one class and a summer workload, and it is simply going to be impossible for me to do so when the fall arrives and brings with it the full pace of this organization,” Gottschalk said at the meeting.

The resignation marks the third time in as many years that an SGA executive board member has stepped down from office.

In securing the post last April, Gottschalk, a junior economics major and senator since 2003, defeated sophomore international business major Andrew Alperin and junior political science major Danielle Burckson by a total of 11 votes.

At the time, Gottschalk ran on a platform that cited problems with the Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution as an area in need of reform.

“I want to sincerely apologize for leaving my post in this manner, but at some point I cannot afford to attend Northeastern and not have substantial income to support my expenses,” he said at the meeting. “I thought it best to vacate my position now, leaving ample time for the senate to elect my replacement and allow that person to get acclimated before the fall arrives.”

After his announcement, several e-board members addressed the senate and thanked Gottschalk for his service to the organization.

In an interview with The News, President Rogan O’Handley expressed regret for the departing vice president, but said the association will continue on.

“The e-board thus far has held together very strongly,” O’Handley said. “George is a close friend of ours and a great colleague and we’re going to miss working with him, but we see the bigger picture and that is that we still have a lot of work to do regardless of what happens, and we have to move forward.”

An emergency Joint Senate meeting was held last night to elect Campos for the vacated position, which is the second-highest role in student government.